(Bloomberg) -- The U.K. government kept open the prospect of a Christmas lockdown as daily Covid cases remained near record levels, driven by the fast-spreading omicron variant.

Ministers are considering how to respond after Boris Johnson’s scientific advisers recommended bringing in tougher rules “very soon” if he wants to keep hospitalizations from escalating to thousands a day. The government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies said limits on household mixing and the closing of hospitality venues could “substantially reduce” the peak in cases.

“We can’t make hard, fast guarantees” Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab told BBC Radio when asked if he could rule out a lockdown over the festive period. “We have to keep the evidence viewed on an hour-by-hour and day-by-day basis.”

The prime minister is being squeezed by government scientists on one side, who say earlier intervention is more effective, and mutinous members of his party on the other, who have already been angered by restrictions they view as unreasonable interference in the lives of ordinary Britons. 

The scale of Conservative opposition to more curbs was put into stark focus last week, when more than 100 of Johnson’s Members of Parliament opposed the introduction of Covid passes to gain entry to venues and large events -- the biggest rebellion of his tenure. The measure was approved only because of support from the opposition Labour Party. 

The “crisis of confidence” in Johnson’s leadership from the Tories “is impacting on the government’s public health response,” Labour Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting told Sky on Sunday.

Adding to the sense of disagreements in the ruling party, the Times on Monday reported that Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Truss are among 10 cabinet ministers resisting calls to toughen the Covid rules before Christmas. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg also oppose the move, the paper said.

Sunak isn’t opposed to new measures, but rather wants to see more evidence backing the need to bring them in, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Government Aid?

The chancellor also faces a clamor from hospitality businesses calling for more government support because Christmas bookings have been hit by mass cancellations as Britons dial down their social interactions in the face of the surging pandemic. 

The Treasury is examining where support is most needed and how best to deploy it, according to the person, who said any aid would be tied to the nature of any new restrictions -- if there are any.

Johnson’s ability to persuade his party to support any fresh measures has been hobbled by a series of missteps that have weakened his standing. Last week’s rebellion over Covid rules in the House of Commons was followed by a resounding defeat in a special election that saw the Tories lose a seat they had held for 200 years. 

All of that followed weeks of turmoil that began with Johnson’s botched attempt to prevent Parliament’s suspension of his friend, Conservative MP Owen Paterson over violations of lobbying rules. In between that and the loss of Paterson’s seat last week, the Tories have been hit by a string of negative news stories about second jobs held by MPs and about parties and other social gatherings apparently held in breach of Covid rules last year.

The latest controversy came when The Guardian newspaper published a picture on Monday of Johnson, his wife, and Downing Street staff drinking wine and eating cheese in the garden of No. 10 during lockdown last year. A spokesman for Johnson denied it was a party.

“This was not a social gathering: it is palpably not a social gathering, because you had people in work suits, following meetings that they were having at work,” Raab told Times Radio. “Let’s also remember, Number 10 was a place, the hub, where they were running the crisis response.”

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